Safety Round The Clock! Nellore Police Rescue Woman Who Sent SOS Alert Through Disha App

The Disha App is a mobile application that was brought in by Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy to facilitate an SOS service for women in times of distress or danger. Over 1,000 crimes against women across the state have been registered and dealt with through the app since its launch, and the recent rescue mission carried out through the app stands proof to the fast and responsive team that has been working behind the screens of the application.

The Nellore police team were able to successfully track down and rescue a woman who had sent an SOS through the Disha app on the night of November 20. Following the complaint, three people who allegedly harassed her were also arrested on the charges of attempt to rape.

Woman Uses Disha App To Alert Police

According to the statement by the Kavali Rural circle inspector M. Rajesh, one among the arrested had befriended the woman sometime back and had taken her to a beach resort on November 20. However, the woman was unaware that he had also invited over some of his friends in a plot to attempt to rape her. When she refused their approach and tried leaving, they threatened to kill her if she did not cooperate with them.

She then decided to call out for help, and under the pretext of using the nearby restroom, she alerted the officials through the SOS option on the Disha app. However, she was unable to answer the call that came through from the police control room.

The woman's failure to respond to the call nudged the control room staff to contact the alternative number that the woman had entered while registering to the app. The alternative number was that of a close friend of hers, who, upon receiving the message from the police, called her up to check up on her. Soon after the woman picked up her friend's call, the police were able to track down her location and commence the timely rescue mission.

According to a report by the Deccan Chronicle, the team of police staff rushed to the resort and arrested the three accused - Avula Prasad, Konduru Venkateswarlu and Katamgari Sankaraiah. The woman was taken back to safety and the Nellore district superintendent of police Ch. Vijaya Rao reflected on the incident to advise women to download the Disha app and register it properly with all their necessary details.

How Does Disha App Work?

An article by the New Indian Express quoted Commissioner of Police Kanti Rana Tata saying that there's a need for women to install the Disha SOS app to ensure that police forces can reach out to them effectively in cases of emergencies. He also mentioned that the app had enabled them to keep a check on crimes against women.

The app, which works even without an active internet connection, has set a record by implementing SOS services that are responded to within less than five minutes and reach out to the victim at the earliest.

Earlier this year, the NTR district administration and police officials had collaboratively conducted a Disha App registration and awareness drive in the district, which successfully recorded three lakh downloads and two lakh registrations. The app created by the Andhra Pradesh Police Communication wing can easily be installed through the Google Play Store on any Android-based mobile. At times of emergency, one could simply open the app, shake the phone three to five times, and the GPS in the mobile would automatically be activated. It would also further alert nearby police with the help of a push-button messaging system.

It is equipped with necessary tracking and safety features for every user to alert nearby police stations for emergency services. In less than five minutes, police personnel equipped with GPS and mobile data trackers would reach the spot and come to the rescue of the user. The app also comes along with other helpful information, such as nearby safety places, police stations, hospitals and emergency contact numbers.

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